Zardari urged to quit presidential race over mental health claims

Published on Friday 29 August 2008 21:40

THE widower of assassinated former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto should withdraw as a candidate for president because of questions about his mental health, a rival claims.

Ms Bhutto's party has nominated Asif Ali Zardari and analysts say he should secure enough votes to win a 6 September vote by legislators on a replacement for Pervez Musharraf, who resigned as president last week.

A report published this week suggested Mr Zardari, who spent 11 years in prison on various charges but was never convicted, suffers from mental problems.

Ms Bhutto's party has dismissed the report, saying Mr Zardari was tortured in prison and as a result had been under mental stress and had had a heart problem, but had never been mentally ill.

However, rival presidential candidate Mushahid Hussain Sayed, a former minister and leading official of the main pro-Musharraf party, said yesterday that the report raised questions.

Mr Sayed said: "It is legitimate for the people of Pakistan to ask whether that story is true or not and what is his response because, so far, neither the government of Pakistan nor Mr Zardari has responded.

"I would humbly request ... that he should withdraw his candidature in the supreme national interest, in the interest of democratic stability and also in the interest of the future prospects of his ... party."

A party spokeswoman, Farahnaz Isphani, dismissed any suggestion Mr Zardari would withdraw, and also dismissed newspaper speculation that some members of his party were recommending he pull out and focus on running the party.

"Mr Zardari is the Pakistan People's Party's unanimous choice and he accepted our request to take the nomination," said Isphani.

Another party spokesman, Jamil Soomro, said Mr Zardari had moved to the tightly guarded prime minister's house in Islamabad on the advice of party colleagues worried about his safety.